Welcome to the archive of the official blog of Robert Stanek. Robert Stanek is the
author of more than 100 books and is best known for his Ruin Mist novels.
This archive page is for the period June 2005 to November 2003. You can
browse the blog by following these links:

Thank you to all the fans who email
and write!! Summer is fast approaching, and I finally have free time to
update the blog. Wondering what I've been doing that's been keeping me with
my nose to the grindstone for so many months? The best news I have to share
is the publication of the new Ruin Mist books:

In the Service of Dragons, published
in April 2005

In the Service of Dragons II,
published in May 2005

In the Service of Dragons III,
published in June 2005

In the Service of Dragons IV,
published in October 2005

In the Service of Dragons #1 to #4
complete the current story arc, and I hope deliver a satisfying conclusion
to all the previous books. The deluxe editions of The Kingdoms and the Elves
of the Reaches are out as well. They have the same ISBN/price as the
previous edition and include expansive maps, a guide to the people of Ruin
Mist, and more.

The final Ruin Mist Chronicles has
been published as well:

Fields of Honor, published in May
2005

Fields of Honor Deluxe Edition,
published in June 2005

Mark of the Dragon, published
November 2005

Mark of the Dragon Deluxe Edition,
published January 2006

In addition to Deluxe Editions, my
publisher has released (or is releasing) audio editions of the books. Of the
many translations in the works, there are two initial books: the Spanish and
Turkish language versions of The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches. I
love the cover of the Turkish edition and will try to post it here. Hope it
comes out.

God bless and take care,

Robert Stanek

P.S.

Special thanks to
everyone who has written to me about winning Best New Voice In Fantasy 2005
award. I am honored that my work is so highly regarded.

January, 2005

Dear Readers,

Thank you for all the
kind messages over these pasts months. A VERY late Happy New Year to all.

I'm pleased to be able
to share with you some major news. First of all, the new ruinmist.com site is
completed. I hope you'll agree ruinmst.com is a truly excellent site for the
books. There's even a hidden quiz.

More good news? If the
current schedule holds In the Service of Dragons #1 will come out in March
and In the Service of Dragons #2 will come out in May. In May, Fields Of
Honor will also be published.

Best, and thank you as
ever,

Robert Stanek

November, 2004

Dear Readers,

Happy holidays, I hope
you and yours have a wonderful holiday season and a joyous new year—and I
really mean it! Once again, I want to thank the many readers (the true fans)
for helping to spread the word about my books, the many teachers who have
taken the books under their wings and are using the books in the classroom,
and all the people who are now hard at work on international and illustrated
editions of my books.

The most exciting news I
have to share with fans is the work on international and illustrated editions
of my books. RP Books is working with many talented teams of international
publishers, artists and translators to bring my books to new readers all over
the world. These and other editions are or will soon be available in the
U.S., Canada, UK, Spain, Belgium, Greece, Korea, Russia, Turkey, Italy,
Australia, New Zealand, and elsewhere.

Other big news is about
the covers for the new books. I've finally finished the covers for Fields
of Honor and Mark of the Dragon, and I'm very excited to be able to
provide you with a preview on this site. The covers are In the Service of
Dragons #1 and #2 are also available, and in the next few weeks, I will
be able to post the covers for In the Service of Dragons #3 and #4. These books
complete the adult and young adult story arc for the Ruin Mist Chronicles. As
I've finished the writing, these books are in editorial so the 2005
publication dates should hold steady.

Stay tuned for a new
look for the RobertStanek.com web site and news on the next Ruin Mist series.
I'll soon be able to reveal the name of the series and the titles of the
three books in the series.

God bless and take care,

Robert Stanek

September, 2004

Many thanks to the fans
who overwhelmed my publisher with email, letters and faxes' Over 1,500
emails, letters and faxes in the past month! The devil in me wants to say
keep the emails, letters and faxes (FAXES???) coming until my publisher cries
uncle. Because Wow! that's the most correspondence I've ever received. I feel
truly appreciated as a writer. Sigh'

Okay, okay... Before
things get out of hand, the angel in me wants to set the record straight. So
here goes'

Several film production
companies, including Dream Works and Valhalla Motion Pictures, have “expressed
interest” in the Ruin Mist books and other books I've written. There is,
however, no definitive deal or agreement, and I likely wouldn't have signed
an agreement at this time either. Since the Ruin Mist books were first
published, I have turned down two major publishers who wanted to purchase
Worldwide Rights to the Ruin Mist books. The timing of those early deals
wasn't right.

In contrast to Stephen
King who has said “Grab the money and run” with regards to movie rights and
the popular “Take the money and run” song by the Steve Miller Band I believe
it is more important to make the right deals for the right reasons than to
take the money and run. So I'm still looking for the right deals and when
they come, I will let fans know as soon as possible right here on this web
site.

Okay, so where is the
world of Ruin Mist going next? In good old indie style, my publisher is still
doing the solo chicken dance. The next Ruin Mist book for adults is Fields
of Honor, due out in May 2005. The next Ruin Mist book for children is In
the Service of Dragons (Keeper Martin's Tales #5), also due out in May
2005. Work is also starting on:

Ruin Mist: The Roleplaying Game Guide

Ruin Mist: Peoples and Creatures Compendium

Battle for
Ruin Mist™: The Trading Card Game

There are opportunities
for writers, players, and
readers who are interested in helping out as freelancers. Sales of the books
in the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom continue to be
strong. Translation news hasn't changed much since last month, with
translations in the works or in discussion for Chinese, Korean, Russian,
Turkish, Japanese, Finnish, Danish, Spanish, German, Greek, and Italian. The
publisher has decided to do the audio edition of the Ruin Mist books in-house
and is contacting several well-known voice actors/narrators including Jim
Dale, the popular reader for the Harry Potter books. My choice would be my
good friend John Goodman (nope not that one), but we'll see how it goes.

Robert Stanek

August, 2004

Thank you to everyone
who has sent letters and emails over the past many months. I enjoy hearing
from readers but it is getting harder and harder to respond. I will try to
provide more news and information through robertstanek.com but also through the
Robert Stanek Message Board.
The biggest news is publication dates have been set for the next Ruin Mist
books. Many readers already noticed this so I won't try to post a list of
dates. These dates may change in the future any how.

Other big news has to do
with the artwork I created for the Ruin Mist books. Several distributors have
picked up the poster catalog line. This means
the Ruin Mist art prints and posters will soon be more widely available.

In school and library
news, The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches has landed on many
schools lists as "recommended" summer reading. This success is due
in large part to the many teachers and librarians who have championed the
books. To celebrate, I have 10 copies of the Student's Classroom Guide to
Ruin Mist which I will give away to the next 10 teachers or librarians
who email me.

Again, translation and
rights news continues to grow. Audio editions of two books should be available
starting Fall 2005. The growing list of translations in progress or in
discussion now includes: Chinese, Korean, Russian, Turkish, Japanese,
Finnish, Danish, Spanish, German, and Italian.

Thanks again for all
your support!

Robert Stanek

June, 2004

2004 continues to be a
terrific year for my books and I owe it all to fans and their support. I'm
pleased to report my books have won a number of small press awards including:

Best Children's Book of
the Year for 2003 - The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches

Best Fantasy Book of the
Year for 2003 - Kingdom Alliance

These and the other
awards mean so much to me because they come from fans and from the small
press community. Equally as rewarding is seeing the books used in classrooms.
Over 250 schools in the U.S. have started using the books and I continue to
thank all the educators who have taken the books under their wings.

Translation and rights
news continues to grow. My book Magic Lands: Journey Beyond the Beyond is
being considered for adaptation as a feature animation. I should have more
details on this in the coming months. Translations of my books are in
progress or in discussion for the following languages: Chinese, Korean,
Russian, Bulgarian, Japanese, Finnish, Danish, Spanish and German.

The discussion at the
message board continues to grow. The number of messages has doubled in the
past few months going from 5,000 posts to well over 10,000 posts. I started a
second interactive chat with fans in May. Please stop by the discussion board
and join in the fun.

Thanks again for all
your support! It is truly a pleasure to hear from excited readers and learn
about how the books have touched their lives.

Robert Stanek

April, 2004

2004 is proving to be a
great year for my books and I want to thank all the fans for their support.
Over 250 schools in the U.S. have started using the books in the classroom. I
want to thank all the educators who have taken the books under their wings
and continue to support my work. I hear from excited readers every day about
how the books have changed their lives and helped them rediscover a love of
reading.

I want to thank all the
international fans as well. Thanks to your support translations are in
progress or in discussion for the following languages: Chinese, Korean,
Russian, Bulgarian, Japanese, Finnish and Danish.

In other news, the
discussion at the message board
continues to grow. There are over 5,000 posts since October 2003. I plan to
have another interactive chat beginning in May. Please stop by the discussion
board and join in the fun.

Robert Stanek

February 2004

It's been a tough start
to the new year. My wife has been in the hospital and had to have surgery.
One week of hospital time and six weeks in recovery. I haven't had any free
time to make updates on the site so I wanted to make a quick update while I
had a moment. I want to thank everyone who participated in the interactive
chat on the message boards.
It was a pleasure to speak with fans. I hope to start another interactive
chat in the spring.

Robert Stanek

December 2003

Happy Holidays! Thanks to all the dedicated readers who continue
to read and support my books. Believe me, it's not easy to make it as a small
press author, and the dedication of fans is truly appreciated. For those
who've written to me about troubles they've had finding the books, I
completely understand your frustration but you have to remember there are over
2.5 million books in print and most bookstores carry about 50,000
titles. Out of these 50,000 titles the majority are from major publishers.

The good news is that RP Books, the
publisher, has inked several new distribution deals which should improve
availability of the books in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, and Asian
markets. I also want to thank the many teachers, librarians and other
educators who have taken the books under their wings and help to support the
books in schools and libraries.

Currently, I'm working
on the new editions of The Kingdoms and the Elves books. The books
have a new design and I'm very excited about the cover art, which I designed.
I hope to see more readers at the discussion forums. I do
hope to make regular postings there and how to start an interactive Q&A
thread soon. Thanks to all the readers who have written and asked about the
books.

I will be working
through the holidays on a deadline to complete the next book. If you'd like
to write me send email to robertstanek@robertstanek.com.
I hope to hear from you!